Category Archives: Music News

4-Way Split Review: Sundae Bloody Sundae

Sundae Bloody Sundae4 bands, 4 songs, all emo.  That is what Sundae Bloody Sundae is all about.

The 4-Way Split was put out by Skeletal Lightning last November and easily has the ability to make you take a break from life and check your feelings.

Don’t worry, it’s ok to do that – we are human after all and this split is not all that sad.

Featuring new and unreleased music by four talented acts, Sundae Bloody Sundae is a great comp to be listening to if you are looking for a little variety by some bands you may have overlooked at one time or have not even heard of.

The World Is A Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid To Die‘s “Fat Heaven” will depress the shit out of you and make you hungry possibly for a donut.  Man, what a downer of track.  I seriously think listening to this with your head down, walking slowly in public and avoiding all eye contact is the only way to listen to this tune.  I loved it.  There is a reason so many people dig this band…

Rozwell Kid did an impressive cover of Spirit Night’s “The Weather”.   I can’t lie, I thought I liked the original more, but the more and more I listened to this track over and over,  Rozwell Kid’s own Weezer-esque twist on the original won me over.

Kittyhawk….oh Kittyhawk.  You make my heart bleed.  Listening to “Soft Serve” turned me into just a pile of mush.  The thing I loved the most about this track is the 90s feel I sensed throughout.  Dare I say, but the dual vocals remind me of The Cranberries a ton.

Two  Knights‘s “Benji’s Cool Times Summer Jamz” was a little technical, a little instrumental, and plenty interesting to listen to.  Starting off uppity, things soon slowed down with a self-reflection of sorts.

At a whopping $3 to download or $5 for a flexie, I think this would be well spent money to any music fan out there.  This will last a lot longer than a sundae, especially if you are me.

Tracklisting (Two-sided):
Side A:
The World Is A Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid To Die – “Fat Heaven”
Rozwell Kid – “The Weather (Spirit Night)”

Side B:
Kittyhawk – “Soft Serve”
Two Knights – “Benji’s Cool Times Summer Jamz”

Pressing information
1,000 copies –
– /250 White Flexi w/ screenprinted hand-numbered covers (Available exclusively at FEST 13)
– /750 Clear Flexi w/ full color cover.

Album Review: Various Artists – Todd Is My Co-Pilot

Dirt Cult Comp - Todd C. Is My Co-PilotJust before the end of 2014, Dirt Cult Records head honcho, Chris Mason, decided to drop some tunes for all to hear on a comp called Todd Is My Co-Pilot.

Apparently a few years back, Mason and his pal Walker decided that someone needed to make a Todd C. comp for all to hear.

What once was a booze-fueled conversation between pals turned into reality as Mason reached out to tons of bands and many of them sent in covers to be included.  Maybe it did not go as quickly as he and Walker had intended, but one day Mason realized he had more than enough to make their idea a reality.

So who exactly is Todd you ask?  He’s actually Todd Congelliere, the founder of Recess Records and also  the one-man show / front-man for bands such as The Underground Railroad To Candyland,  F.Y.P. and Toys That Kill.

I am sure if you are a fan of punk rock, you now know who I speak of. Even if you are not, you should check out this comp and become familiar with Todd C.  This dude packs tons of talent.

Todd Is My Co-Pilot features covers by amazing acts like The Brokedowns, Iron Chic, Low Culture, Sundowners, and even Mike Watt and the Secondmen.

Vacation did a great rendition of “Dead Inside” while Iron Chic put their own twist on Toys That Kill’s “White Lies”.  I loved the fuzzy bass on this track.  Apocalypse Meow’s clean cover on “Illegitimate” was very close sounding if not a little slower but still awesome.

Full Sun was an act on this comp who I have not really gotten to know, but after hearing them cover Toys That Kill’s “31 Year Old Daydream”, I realize that needs to change.  The very 80s female driven punk rock sounds were perfect for this take and invited me to check out their original material.

Hearing The Plurals cover Todd C’s “You’ll Hear My Voice” instantly reminded of the very interesting video I saw for this song that was full of Kewpies.  Check it out here.

Of course I need to talk about Mike Watt & the Secondmen’s take on “No One”.  I was so stoked to see Watt and crew on this comp and to be honest, their version of the track  was….well…experimental-ish.  It was like Primus meets Ween meets Toys That Kill.  I still dug.

This is not just some half-assed idea when you look at who all contributed.  The best part about this comp?  Dirt Cult released it for free.  Zero cheddar.  Nada.

So what the hell are you waiting on?  Either head over to the Dirt Cult Band Camp page, or click below and proceed to download.  It’s pay what you want, so do your thing and hope no one finds out how much of a cheap ass you really are.  More importantly, enjoy.

Watch This: Chris Stowe – “Blood Drinkers”

My pals over at Cleveland’s Turnstyle Films have been so busy as of late.  I love seeing what they are working on via social media and Instagram.

Needless to say, I was aware of their involvement with Chris Stowe a while back and have been looking forward to this video for a while now.

Finally I had the chance to catch it today.  Now it is your turn:

This video is visually stunning and goes perfectly with Stowe’s somber song that pushes on a certain relationship to the final strand.

Turnstyle Films has really outdone themselves with this video.

Stowe’s debut, Hollow, dropped just this past June of this year via A-F Records and remains one of my favorite releases of 2014.

Fat Wreck Announces NOFX Backstage Passport Soundtrack

As many of you probably already know, NOFX’Fat Mike has a mean punch and swift kick ready for anyone who happens to sneak up on him while he is rocking out on stage.

fat_mike_kick_face

Was it a dick move?  Maybe, but you know what?  He not only apologized to the kid on Twitter after the kid Tweeted him an apology, but even invited the kid to join him and the band backstage at the following show and allowed the kid to kick him back.

I really hope that makes a future Backstage Passport episode.

I also hope Ben Weasel can just drop it already.  I do not even wish to get into that quarrel between those two former label mates.  It is almost depressing to even think about.  In fact, I am done even thinking about that bull mess…

Anyways, Fat Wreck Chords announced last week that there would be a soundtrack released for NOFX Backstage Passport.

NOFX Backstage Passport Soundtrack

Normally I would just skip over this idea as it sounds like a quick way to make a quick buck by the band, but this soundtrack is actually rare, unreleased, and remixed material from seasons 1 and 2 of the hilarious show.

Season 2 has not even been released yet if that tells you anything…

The soundtrack drops in a month and there will be a vinyl release that should be pressed and shipped out by  January 13th, 2015.

Taken from the Fat Wreck press release since I am running out of crap to say:
In 2008, NOFX starred in the TV show Backstage Passport, a series that documented the insane hijinks of the band as they weaved an unsteady path through exotic locales where most sane bands fear to tread. Today, we’re pleased to announce that the official Backstage Passport Soundtrack is being released on December 9th (Vinyl in January 2015). Packed with 15 tracks from both seasons (That’s right! The second season is nearing completion as you read this.), the Backstage Passport Soundtrack is a one-stop shop for all the rare, remixed, and unreleased material that folks could only previously enjoy as snippets during the show. If you’re new to the game and haven’t seen Backstage Passport, do yourself a favor and grab a DVD copy. NOFX will be pulling their passports out once again for an extensive headlining tour of Australia.

Pre-orders for the Backstage Passport should be up soon.  Head over to the Fat Wreck site for more info.

Track List (* Previously Unreleased / + Remixed)
1: Backstage Passport *
2: No Fun In Fundamentalism +
3: Insulted By Germans (Again) +
4: All My Friends In New York +
5: You Will Lose Faith +
6: Teenage Punching Bag
7: Leaving Jesusland (Live) *
8: The Greatest Country In the World *
9: Last Night Was Really Fun? +
10: We’re Bros *
11: Your Hubcaps Cost More Than My Car +
12: Fan Mail +
13: Arming the Proletariat With Potato Guns
14: I, Melvin
15: Punk Rock Passport *

 

New Music Video: Buzzcocks – “It’s Not You”

It’s nice to see bands legends like the Buzzcocks still do what they do best and not disappoint at all.

Buzzcocks

Today, the UK punk pioneers dropped a video for “It’s Not You”, a single off their new album titled The Way.  This all new release if scheduled to be available on November 18th on 1-2-3-4 GO! Records.

Check it out:

I do not know about you, but I dig this track a lot.  Nice to see a band that is pushing 40 years still have no problem delivering some solid material.

Pre-Order a copy of The Way today by clicking HERE.